


Yet another life, love all the same

by Alpacapricot



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, Reincarnation, Soulmates, not too much angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-11-01 13:24:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20815859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alpacapricot/pseuds/Alpacapricot
Summary: Yuuri could recognize Victor anywhere, anytime. Each reincarnation, as soon as Yuuri saw him, he knew it was him. But Victor could not recognise Yuuri until they shared their first kiss. To help Yuuri find him, Victor becomes a legendary figure skater. Yuuri could simply go to his rink as a fan and reveal who he was.But why be a fan when he could be so much more ?A reincarnation AU where Yuuri and Victor love each other life after life.





	Yet another life, love all the same

**Author's Note:**

> This was beta'd by [Bafflinghaze](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bafflinghaze). Thank you so much, this is MUCH better with your corrections.

The first time Yuuri saw his Beloved soaring on the ice on TV, the only thing he could think of was: "Figure skating? Really?"

It wasn't that surprising though. It had been their strategy for their past three lives. Since international mass media had become a thing, the best way to find each other was for his Beloved to do something outstanding that would put him in the international press. And becoming an athlete was a good way as any to accomplish that. Now, all Yuuri had to do was to go to one of his events as a fan, get close enough to talk to him, and tell him who he was. Then they would kiss, his Beloved would recognize him, and they could start this new life together.

Because Yuuri could recognize him anywhere, anytime. But not his Beloved. They didn't know why, but that was how it worked. Each reincarnation, as soon as Yuuri saw him, he knew it was him. Of course it helped that he always had silver hair. But even without that, no matter what his name was, what his gender was, where he was born, or what colour his skin was, Yuuri could recognize him in a heartbeat. For his Beloved though, it was another story. Like Yuuri, he kept all his memories of all their past lives together. But no matter what Yuuri's name was, what his gender was, where he was born, or what the colour of his skin was, his Beloved could not recognize him as his soulmate until their first kiss.

And that was why his Beloved, named Victor Nikiforov this time, was spinning on the ice on international television. They were lucky. Yuuri was only eight years old when he saw the program in their little kitchen TV. Victor was older than him, but not that much. They were early in their lives, close in age. It was a good start.

"You okay? You're spacing out," Mari, his big sister, asked him.  
Yuuri smiled in answer.  
"I'm okay. He's just very...talented."  
Mari gave a look back at the TV, where Victor had finished his program and was now showered in flowers and plushies.  
Yuuri wanted to shower him in flowers too.

Ice skating, huh? Now that he thought about it, he had never tried ice skating. He usually wasn't born in a country cold enough for it, and indoor rinks were a relatively new thing.

Luckily, his hometown had a skating rink. The next weekend he asked his parents to go. At first he kept landing on his ass, and thought the activity was stupid. Why did his Beloved choose to do such a dumb sport? But when he found his balance and started to glide, he kind of understood. It felt a bit magical, to glide like that. It was like flying.

Now he wasn't so sure he wanted to meet his Beloved as a fan wanting to exchange a few words. Plus, he knew his soulmate. Victor loved grand outstanding romantic gestures. Why be just a fan when he could be so much more?

That night, Yuuri wrote a letter. He didn't know when or how he would post it to Victor, but he was sure some fan magazine would have a service to relay fan mail. His letter contained only two sentences, no name, and no return address.

"Found you. Wait for me."

* * *

Victor was twelve when he received a fan letter that was, without a doubt, from his Beloved.

Only, the letter contained no name, no return address, and only two sentences.

None of that could help him contact his Beloved. It was as if he didn't want Victor to find him. Victor spent many sleepless nights wondering why. Maybe his Beloved was much older than him this time, and already had made himself a life without him that he didn't want to give up? Maybe he was waiting for his current spouse to die before contacting him? That wasn't very plausible, really. They did take other lovers sometimes. In dozens of lives they had missed each other because they were too far away in time or space. It made sense to spend such a life with someone else. But even if they didn't spend one life as lovers, they always tried to contact each other. Why didn't his Beloved want to see him?

Maybe he wanted to wait for the right time to reveal himself. Maybe he was preparing something. It would make sense, with the "wait for me" of the letter.

But as the years passed with no sign of his Beloved, this theory went less and less likely.

The letter was hope and it was despair. Sometimes it warmed his heart, to know that his Beloved was there, somewhere, not too far away. Sometimes it made his heart shatter, to know that he was there, just an inch out of his reach. But even if it hurt sometimes, he always kept the letter close to his heart. Because above all, it was a promise. His Beloved would come to him. All he had to do was wait.

And so he waited.

He continued to skate. At first it was a good way to put himself in the news. But he found that he really loved the sport. It was a shame that he hadn't discovered it sooner. It reminded him of fond memories of dancing in ballrooms with his Beloved, of crossing a frozen sea to reach him, of waiting for his Beloved's smile to melt the winter across his heart.

In each program he poured all of his soul, all of his heart, knowing that somewhere his Beloved was watching. That maybe if he showed in his steps and his jumps how much he longed for him, how much he loved him and missed him, then he would come for him.

The seasons passed. He reached the senior division. He became a multiple time world medalist. But still, his Beloved eluded him.

One day, out of spite, he cut off his long silver hair that his Beloved loved so much. He even considered dying it a different colour. Maybe, when he'd see him on television with short hair, he'd understand that Victor wanted him to come find him now. But still, no other letter came to him.

When Chris started to flirt with him Victor didn't hesitate much. Obviously this was going to be one of those lives that he had to find other people to fill it with. Chris was kind. Chris was beautiful. In the name of disclosure, Victor told him that he loved someone else, someone he couldn't have yet. He had explained in half words and shrouded truths how he had a soulmate out there who didn't want to see him. Chris had answered that he was happy with having him for as long as he wanted him.

Chris was a good friend, and a good lover. But still, he wasn't his Beloved.

* * *

Yuuri worked hard to reach the level of Victor. The years were long, and a million times he was tempted to forget the romantic gesture and just send Victor his cellphone number. But he already had spent years training, waiting, making his Beloved wait for him. He had to commit to it.

His life was filled with training and watching Victor skating on TV, and not much else. Only a socialite of the caliber of Pichit was able to weasel his way into his life. Yuuri had little interest in making friends (a fact his Beloved berated him about often) but Pichit was so persistent that he made a place for himself into Yuuri's life. Pichit often commented on his obsession for Victor. As his roommate, he knew just how often Yuuri watched and re-watched recordings of Victor's skates, interviews, training videos, everything.

"What makes you so interested in him?" he frequently asked.

Yuuri answered noncommittally. But once, Yuuri was a bit too drunk. Pichit asked again. And Yuuri was tired of walking this road all by himself.

"We're soulmates," he mumbled, half to himself, his voice muffled by Pichit's shoulder as he carried a drunk Yuuri back home.  
Pichit hummed.  
"You're really, really obsessed with him."  
"No, I mean it," Yuuri insisted through the drunk haze. "We had... so many lives. I love him so much. You have no idea. I would never let death part us."  
Yuuri gripped Pichit's shoulders and blinked tears away from his eyes.  
"What do you mean?" he asked.

Some sane part of Yuuri's brain was yelling that he should stop. That he should keep their secret for himself. But he was drunk, and so, so tired.

"We... there's a... reincarnation thing going on," he confessed to Pichit's shoulder, because it was easier than talking to a real person. "We remember each other. I know he's him but he doesn't know I'm me and... and I miss him so, so much."  
He sobbed. He couldn't help it.  
Pichit kept silent. He seemed to ponder this for a moment. Yuuri braced himself for being called a liar or a dreamer. Instead, Pichit asked:  
"If that's so, why don't you talk to him? You just have to explain who you are to him, right? I'm sure Celestino could put you in contact."

Yuuri must have been really drunk because he didn't even stop to consider that Pichit was believing him without question. He just sighed.

"I should." Maybe it was the alcohol making everything simpler, or it was the loneliness overpowering his planning, but it really seemed like the only possible answer right at that moment. "I really should, this is so stupid. I have this grand plan of skating a program just for him. And, and, as I finish, I go for him, and take him in my arms, and then... That's why I started skating. It's just to make a stupid program to tell him how much I love him. I should..."  
He stopped. His throat was cluttered with unshed tears. How did he end up in such a stupid, stupid situation?  
Instead of doubting him or berating him, Pichit just hummed.  
"I'm sure he'll be touched when you skate for him."  
In the silence of the night, Yuuri cried against his back.

The next day, the first thing Pichit asked over breakfast was whether Yuuri meant what he said or if he was just too drunk to make sense. Yuuri froze, his miso soup hovering halfway through his mouth. He considered denying it. But what was the point. He silently nodded.

"Well, your obsession with him is a lot less weird now."

And that's all they said about it.

* * *

The thing with Chris was a fling, but it ended up lasting years. Chris was a good friend. He didn't mind when Victor sang praises of his Beloved and was always there to lend a shoulder to cry on. He made his life a little less empty.

The only other person Victor was moderately attracted to was Yuuri Katsuki.

Okay, he was more that moderately attracted to him.

Yuuri Katsuki was beautiful. He was at once both delicate and strong, a presence on the ice like no one else. Victor didn't know him very well. He was younger than him and had started skating later. But he was good and Victor had no doubt that it would not be long before they skated on the same ice. Then Victor would try to get to know him better. He seemed to be the sort of person that Victor could spend one life with. He was tired of waiting for his Beloved, so he didn't feel like waiting for Yuuri Katsuki either. If his Beloved was so determined to keep himself far from him, he couldn't blame him if he tried to flirt with the cutest figure skater alive, right?

* * *

When Yuuri saw him, he felt like he was going into cardiac arrest.

What was Victor doing here?!

This was the first year Yuuri had qualified for the Grand Prix Final. And he shared exactly zero events with Victor. Which actually was just fine with him as he hadn't expected to qualify this fast and he wouldn't have had the time to put his plan in motion that year. Next year. Yeah, next year he would do it, provided he shared at least one competition with Victor.

But his plans didn't include Victor showing up out of the blue at the NHK when he wasn't competing in it.

It was after the competition, thank God, or he would have been so distracted he would have ended up breaking a leg. They were at the cocktail reception following the competition. Victor had just entered the room and immediately everyone swooned around him, asking him what he was doing here. Yuuri froze on the spot. His Beloved was here! Really here! He missed him so much and his legs were fighting him desperately for a chance to get closer, to see his eyes, his smile. But at the same time, Yuuri was terrified. He couldn't risk trying to talk to him yet. There was no way he could act normal around him! Victor would be suspicious, Yuuri would give himself up and all of his plans would be for nothing!

He grabbed a flute of champagne to give himself something to do and walked as calmly as possible to the opposite corner of the room. He sipped his champagne silently, giving discreet glances to Victor who was surrounded by a wall of fans.

It was strange, finally seeing him here. Thanks to pictures and recordings Yuuri was familiar with Victor's face, voice and stature. His memories recognized the smile, the laugh, the eyes. Logically speaking he knew all of his Beloved already. But still, this was the first time he was actually seeing him, _this_ him, and it sent tingles all over his neck.

Pichit detached from the bundle of fans gravitating around Victor and went toward Yuuri. Thankfully, no one followed him.

"Why is he here?" Yuuri whispered, even though no one else was in earshot.  
"He says he just wanted to congratulate fellow skaters." Pichit shrugged.  
Yuuri sent Victor another quick look. He was laughing at something. God, seeing him smile made his heart soar and ache.  
"You okay?" Pichit asked in a worried tone.  
Yuuri hid his face behind his hand.  
"I just... He's just here and..."  
"You wanna talk to him?"  
"I _can't_!" Yuuri furiously whispered. "What will I say? I don't want to lie to him and I don't want to ruin the surprise. I'm trapped!"  
"Okay, okay. No talking," Pichit allowed with a reassuring squeeze of his shoulder. "We can go away now, if you want. It won't be weird. I can cover your tracks and throw off curious onlookers!" he said with far too much cheer for the situation.  
Thank God for Pichit, Yuuri thought. He didn't deserve such a good friend.  
"I should do that. I don't know if I want to go away or get closer," Yuuri confessed with a sigh.  
"You'll have to make up your mind quickly, because if he's really here to congratulate the participants, you're one of them."  
Yuuri bit his lip.  
"No choice then." He sighed.  
"Let's go then. If anyone asks, I'll say you had a headache."  
"You're a lifesaver."

Yuuri sighed again. Still, he missed him. It would have been nice to finally talk to him for a little bit. He finished his glass, put it down on the table, and just as he lifted his eyes to steal one last glance at Victor, he saw him walk toward them with the biggest smile on his face.

At the look of alarm on Yuuri's face, Pichit looked behind his shoulder and saw him too.

"Stay calm, I'll do all the talking."  
"I can't do this," Yuuri mumbled. And he stopped talking, because Victor was a few feet from them and oh God. He was beautiful.

All the cameras in the world couldn't capture how beautiful Victor was. Maybe he had a bias, but in all of their lives, Yuuri had always found him beautiful. Even when they got old and Victor complained about his thinning hair. Even that one time Victor had sporiasis and spent ten years avoiding Yuuri because he was afraid of showing his face.

And this version of Victor was somehow even more charming than usual. His pale skin and bright blue eyes complemented his everlasting silver hair so perfectly. He should always have blue eyes, Yuuri decided. And this jaw, and these hands, and this suit... Yuuri could only stare, all of his senses overwhelmed by the sudden presence of his Beloved, so, so close.

"Hey Victor, how's it going so far?" Pichit asked in a joyful tone.  
"I'm having a great time thank you. And you must be Katsuki, right? I don't believe we've met yet."

Victor's smile was so bright and full of sunshine that Yuuri didn't notice at first that he was giving him his hand to shake.  
Yuuri's fingers trembled as he took that perfect hand in his.  
He could feel his heart jump into his throat when his skin touched his Beloved's.  
Pichit nudged his foot and Yuuri realised he was silently staring at their joined hands. He scrambled for something to say.

"A-ah yes, this is the first time we’ve met."  
God could he be ever more obvious?!  
"I must say, you are quite impressive on the ice!"  
Yuuri gaped at him.  
"Seriously? You're the one saying that when you're so...!"  
Yuuri put his hand in front of his mouth to avoid saying too much.  
Victor tilted his head, an adorable little crooked smile on his face.  
"I'm so...?"  
"Yuuri is a big fan of yours, he takes a lot of his inspiration from your programs!" Pichit chimed in, the glee apparent in his eyes.  
Traitor. Yuuri glared at him, but only earned a wink for his trouble.  
Victor seemed absolutely delighted by this piece of information.  
"Wow! That's so interesting, I really like your style as well!"  
"What?!" Victor watched one of his programs? And liked it?? "But I can't do half of the jumps you do!"  
"If you want your program to be memorable, the PCS are far more important than the TES! And you...!" he declared while pointing an index at Yuuri's face, so close that Yuuri actually had to take a step back, "...know how to make emotional programs. That's what I look for in a skater."

Victor had been watching his programs. He somewhat knew who he was already. Yuuri... didn't know what to do with this information. He couldn't look in his big, bright eyes, at his thin, loving lips, without taking him into his arms and whispering, "It's me, Beloved".

He lowered his head, looking desperately for something to say. Luckily Pichit finally decided to come to his rescue.

"That's unexpected coming from someone with four quads in his roster! But then again, you commission original music right?"  
Victor made a small pause before answering.  
"Yeah, most often I do."  
"Then there's someone I absolutely must introduce you to!"

Pichit grabbed Victor's arm and corralled him back to the party. Victor looked back. Yuuri caught his eyes. There was something in those eyes. It was as if his own longing was staring back at him. As if his Beloved was looking at him, knowing who he was and saying how much he missed him.

And then Pichit said something, Victor turned back, and the moment was lost.

"Oh, Beloved." Yuuri whispered. "Seeing you makes me miss you so much more."

* * *

Befriending Katsuki was proving to be a lot harder than he thought it would be. He had gathered from the grapevine that Katsuki liked his skating, and so he thought that it wouldn't be too hard to engage with him.

If only.

Though Victor tried, Katsuki avoided him almost as well as his Beloved. They didn't share any competition this year and there were only so many events he could find an excuse to attend before his training suffered from it.

Victor drowned his loneliness between Chris's sheets. As the skating season finished, he quite seriously considered ending his career there and then. What was the point, when he had started it to make himself easier to find for his Beloved? For some reason, his Beloved didn't want to see him in this life. Maybe an accident happened years ago and he died already but wasn’t reborn yet. Maybe the magic that tied their souls together had snapped and his Beloved had lost all memories of him. Maybe he finally had enough of Victor and wanted to spend a century or two on his own.

Whichever it was, Victor didn't have it in him to continue skating. He had poured all of his feelings into the ice. All he had left was a hollow heart.

Now he just needed to... say goodbye. One final program to say that he had waited and waited but hoped no more. That he still loved him and longed for him but it was finally time to finish this.

He already had the lyrics all composed in his mind.

Beloved. Please.

Stay close to me...

* * *

Victor had announced that it would be his final season.

Yuuri frantically re-read the article, to be sure that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

Victor was going to stop skating. That meant that this was it. This was his final and only chance to skate on the same ice as him. To skate his program with Victor watching from the sidelines. To bare his soul and his love and have his blades yell "It's me! It's really me!"

So he got the notebook where he has written down all his ideas over the years and started to flesh them out into actual programs.

Hours passed and the shadows went longer against the wall. Yuuri was bunched over his notebook, rubbing his eyes to keep himself awake when a mug of cocoa appeared in front of him.

"Ah... Thanks," he graciously accepted.  
"No problem," Pichit answered as he plopped down on Yuuri's bed. "Still working on your programs?"  
Yuuri nodded. His fingers curled around the heat of the mug. It was soothing.

They spent a moment in the silence of the late evening, each lost in their own thoughts.

"How long have you known each other? If you don't mind me asking," Pichit suddenly asked.  
Yuuri squirmed. He didn't really like to talk about their lives to others. But Pichit was no stranger. He was his friend and deserved a bit of openness.  
"I don't really know, to be honest. I've lost count a long time ago."  
"Are we talking, like, centuries?"  
"At least, yes."  
"So you've been around during the Renaissance? The Middle Ages?"  
"Yeah." Yuuri took a sip of the cocoa. Still a bit too hot to drink. "Why do you ask?" he said in a tone kept carefully light.  
"This is making me think about it," Pichit said with a nod toward Yuuri's notebook where his program's ideas were displayed. "I'm just curious. I mean, who wouldn't be? It's supernatural. A lot of people would want to know the key to immortality."  
Yuuri sighed.  
"Don't I know it."

He knew why Pichit asked. Why they all asked, when they somehow got the knowledge of his and his Beloved's fate. People killed for a chance of cheating death. They had experienced it before. People who thought they could steal immortality from their cold, dead hands. Yuuri knew Pitchit would ask, sooner or later. They all did.

Pichit gave him an interrogative look, but Yuuri just shook his head.

"I don't know if we even are immortal. There's no guarantee this will go on forever."  
And didn't the thought put ice in his veins every time it came to mind? What if this was their last lives and he wasted a third of it already?  
"Still sounds immortal from my mortal point of view," Pichit said with a shrug. "How did it start?"

Ah. Here they were. Yuuri's fingers tightened around his mug.

"Interested in getting the same fate?" Yuuri asked, though he knew the answer.  
"Who wouldn't?" Pichit answered honestly.  
"Then you're going to be disappointed. I don't know."  
Pichit pouted.  
"Really?"  
"Really. There wasn't anything special about our first lives. We didn't make any pact with a suspicious witch, we didn't find any mysterious amulet, we didn't die together in some dramatic fashion that could have attracted the goodwill of some god. We just died. And then we were reborn again."  
"Strange..." Pichit commented. "Do you know of any other person who can reincarnate?"  
"No. But that doesn't mean there isn't. Beloved and I don't exactly advertise."  
"Yeah. That makes sense."

Pichit didn't say anything more, just sipped on his own cocoa, apparently lost in thought. Yuuri did the same, and hoped that the interrogations would stop at that. He didn't want the next ten years to be peppered by a litany of, "In your first life, did you do this or that?" They had centuries to ask themselves if they did something, anything to warrant their fate. If they haven't come up with any answer, no one else was going to within just one life.

"You must have a ton of interesting stories to tell," Pichit said in a wondering tone.  
Yuuri chuckled.  
"Not that much. I'm a pretty boring person."  
"You have lost any right to say that the moment you said 'centuries'. No, scratch that, the moment you said 'reincarnation'."  
"Hum, okay but... I don't really know what to tell you about."  
Pichit's eyes twinkled from the questions that must be have been pushing each-other in his brain to get out of his mouth first.  
"Have you ever been famous?"  
Yuuri shook his head.  
"No, not really. Like I said, I'm pretty boring."  
"Met someone famous?"  
"Mmmmh let me think..." Yuuri crunched his nose in concentration. "I've been yelled at by Aristide Bruan. Does that count?"  
Pichit blinked.  
"Who?"  
"A French guy who owned a pub and yelled at people. Rich bored people found it fashionable to go have a drink there and get yelled at. I never understood it, but Beloved insisted we go take a look. Got yelled at. Don't recommend."  
Pichit whipped out his phone and typed in a search.  
"Wikipedia says he was a poet and songwriter."  
Yuuri snorted.  
"That got to be the worst case of romanticization I ever heard. He's the equivalent of today's gangsta rap."  
"I guess every generation needs to have this," Pichit mused.  
Yuuri shrugged.  
"More or less, yes."

Pichit hummed for a while, lost in his thoughts again.

"Aren't people... childish, to you?"  
"Ah... I see why you'd think that. But, no. Not really."  
"But you two have so much more experience. Compared to you people must sound like babies. Or even aliens."  
"Don't say it like that." Yuuri couldn't help the distress that croaked his voice.

Pichit paused, carefully considering Yuuri’s closed off stance and tensed lips.

"I'm sorry, what did I say?" Pichit asked apologetically.  
"People. You talk like I'm not part of those people," Yuuri said with his hands tight around his knees. "Other people, they're still humans to me. But me, us, when they find out... That's us who they treat like aliens. I'm still human. I'm still—" A sob choked his voice. "I'm still like you."  
"Oh, Yuuri, I'm sorry," Pichit apologized. He put his arm around Yuuri's shoulders. "I wasn't hearing myself. That was such a shitty thing to say. I'm sorry."  
"'s okay," Yuuri said weakly while wiping his eyes before the tears could fall. "I get that a lot."  
"No, it's not okay. It's never okay."  
"I'm sorry too," Yuuri said.  
"What the hell are you sorry for?" Pichit asked with his arm tighter around Yuuri.  
"I know it's not fair that we're the ones who get this while the others... just die. That's why we avoid talking about it. People get jealous. Or violent. And murderous from time to time."  
"Yuuri..." Pichit started with round eyes.  
"That's okay, not like it means much for us," Yuuri said with a shrug. "I understand why people are angry at us. But there's nothing we can do about it. It's not our fault. We never even asked for this," he said with an increasing pitch and distress.  
"I'm not angry at you." Pichit rubbed Yuuri's arm. "I don't even understand why anyone would ever be angry at you. I... can't say I'm not jealous, in all honesty. But it would be wrong of me to accuse you of anything. We're friends, right? Your past won't ever change that. I shouldn't even have asked. That day when you were drunk and told me about all this, you were so obviously uncomfortable the next day, I decided not to ask. I guess curiosity finally got the best of me. But it was wrong of me. I won't ask anymore. I'm sorry."

Yuuri wanted to say to Pichit that he had nothing to be sorry for. That it was okay to talk about your friend's past, that it was normal, that he had nothing to hide. But the stress of the day crashed down on him. He buried his face in the crook of Pitchit's shoulder and let out his tears.

* * *

"My theme this year will be _On my Love_," Yuuri announced while placing a USB stick in Celestino's hand. "And these are my songs."  
Celestino looked at the USB stick in surprise.  
"Your songs? You've never brought your own music before."  
"Those programs are important to me."  
"So you have some ideas already?"  
"More than."  
"I'm all ears."

At that moment, Yuuri hesitated. These programs were for Victor. Only Victor. But he couldn't possibly keep them secrets. If only because he actually had to skate those in the competition before he could meet Victor on the ice.

"It's... still a bit rough for now," he said to justify his hesitation.  
"And that's my job to make your ideas in a full fleshed program," Celestino answered with a bright smile.  
"I..."  
It was late in the day. The other skaters were already packing up. Only Pichit remained on the ice.  
"Can we wait until the others are gone before I show you? It's... rough."

From the look on Celestino's face, he expected Yuuri to simply tell some of his ideas. Not to have already something to show. Attributing Yuuri's want for privacy as shyness toward his "rough" programs, he simply nodded.

"Alright, that's not a problem," he said. Then, louder: "Pichit, wrap it up! I want to go home already!"  
"A—, actually, Pichit can watch. He could have some insight."  
Celestino gave him a curious look, but didn't say anything.  
Pichit completed his lap and stopped in front of them.  
"Is it that late that you're kicking me out?" he asked with laughter in his eyes.  
"It's not that. Yuuri wants the rink to show us his ideas for the season's programs."  
"Oh, why didn't you just say so?"  
"I don't want the others to watch," Yuuri answered quickly.  
Comprehension lighted up in Pichit's eyes.  
"You know you will have to skate this in front of other people, right?"  
"Yes, but, for now at least..."  
"Yeah, I can imagine how you feel."  
Celestino looked at them curiously, but thankfully didn't comment. Yuuri could already feel his heart beating louder.

Pichit left the ice to Yuuri as the other skaters said their goodbyes. Yuuri went to center ice and tried to put himself in the right frame of mind. In the right feelings.

Yuuri was alone on the ice. Like in his life.

"The short program is about romantic love," his voice echoed in the empty rink.

Pichit started the song on his laptop. Yuuri could barely hear it from the tiny speakers, but it didn't matter. His heart knew it.

Yuuri's arms danced at his sides on the first notes of guitar. He focused on the intent of the program. Seduce his Beloved, all over again.

He actually had hesitated quite a while on the music and theme for the short program. He knew from the beginning that he wanted the two programs to showcase his love for his Beloved. The problem was that his love was far too much to encase in just 7 minutes and 20 seconds.

So he had to make choices. That's when he had stumbled on the two arrangements of "on the matter of love". He loved both of the songs, and they both showed elements of his love. Agape was known as the highest level of love. Unconditional, all-encompasing love. His love for Victor easily qualified. But at the same time, Victor and him were above all lovers.

Time and Fate had made them soulmates. But in their first lives, as well as many more after that, they were lovers. Romantic and, yes, sexual love, was the bud of their story. The most intimate and private part of their lives. The moments they spent entangled into each other, opposed to the lifetimes they spent far from one another.

Like this one so far.

Yuuri wanted his Beloved close to him again. He wanted to seduce him all over again, to show to the world why Victor came back to him life after life. In all that time, in all those lives, there had never been anyone Victor wanted more than him.

That was the feeling he focused on while he skated. That absolute certainty that he was the most beautiful creature in his Beloved's eyes. And that he was about to prove it.

He shook his hips to the memory of Victor's deathly grip on them. He flexed his tights remembering how it felt to push into Victor. He moved his fingers to caress the ghost of Victor's chin.

Before he knew it, he was at his ending position and the music gave way to silence. He was breathless, for more reasons than one. He could almost feel Victor's touch on his skin.

Which made it all the more cruel when Pichit's wolf-whistle brought him back abruptly to the present where Victor wasn't.

Well, he was here to fix that.

He skated toward Celestino and Pichit, noticing that his legs were a bit wobbly. The both of them were staring at him. He could almost make out a blush on Pichit's dark skin.

"That was... different," Celestino said.  
"That was hot as hell!" Pichit exclaimed.  
Yuuri looked at his toes and felt himself blush as well.  
"The technical elements will need work, but there's a spirit in that program that was missing until now," Celestino said with a nod. "If you keep this spirit while staying focused on the technical aspect, this program has the potential to be the height of your career."  
"Thank you coach Celestino, but maybe wait to see the free skate before saying that," Yuuri answered with a half smile.  
"You have that prepared as well?"  
Yuuri nodded and skated back to center ice.

He took a few seconds to switch his frame of mind to something completely different, yet about the very same thing. He focused on his memories of Victor's heart shaped smile. Life after life, the faces changed. But that smile stayed.

"The free skate is about love and life."

Victor wasn't only his lover though. Fate had brought them together. Their love was stronger than death, longer than life. Yuuri couldn't imagine existing without his Beloved by his side. Every second of being apart, they spent on trying to get back together. For them, love and life were intimately connected. Birth and death followed one after the other, but love? Love remained.

Yuuri glided and jumped, knowing that no other person experienced the kind of love they shared, the kind that matured over centuries of living together. No other could understand love and life the way Yuuri experienced it and expressed it in his dance.

No one other than Victor could wait more than twenty years for Yuuri to craft this love letter.

Their link was beyond words. But maybe this program could say what he could not.

When the last notes of the music died out he was left breathless on the ice. But he didn't feel so alone anymore. As long as he was alive, Victor was always with him.

He skated toward his coach and his teammate, feeling strangely relaxed.

"So, what did you think?"  
Celestino looked puzzled.  
"I honestly couldn't have figured out what this one was about if you didn't tell us in the beginning. It was beautiful though. I think I preferred the short program, but this one has the potential to grow."  
That was alright. Yuuri didn't think anyone could really get what that was about.  
Pichit looked thoughtful.  
"Love and life, mh?"  
"They're kind of the same thing for me," Yuuri said, his mind still lost to the memories of his Beloved.  
Pichit nodded, though still looking deep in thought.  
"It's good that you have a full choreography already figured out this early. Tomorrow we'll record this and we'll begin the polishing process. The free skate in particular needs to be clearer if you want to touch the public."  
"With all due respect coach Celestino, my heart is quite settled on the choreography. Especially for the free skate."  
Celestino's eyes widened. He was not used to Yuuri disagreeing openly with him.  
"Like you said earlier, this is still rough."  
Yuuri bit his lip. He didn't want to argue with Celestino, but he also couldn't change what this program was all about.  
"I need to clean it up, and to figure out the jumps and technical elements. I've been thinking about the theme and choreography for... quite some time. This is what I want."  
Celestino rubbed his chin.  
"We'll have time to discuss this tomorrow. Now, run along, it's getting late."

Pichit waited until they were alone in the lockers to comment on the performances. His voice resonated in the empty room.

"I've never seen you get so... open, emotionally. I mean, you're emotional, but you keep your feelings to yourself most of the time."  
"I... am private... with my feelings."  
"What changed?"  
"Those feelings aren't for the public."  
Pichit hummed for a second.  
"Yuuri," Pichit said, suddenly serious. "Don't let Celestino change the program. It was perfect."

* * *

This is it.

It's his last season and Victor's not really trying to win it. So he's less than diligent on his homework. He hasn't even looked at the competition this year. He knows when he and Chris are both skating, that he and Katsuki are sharing their second event at Rostelecom, and that's the extent of it. Though he isn't even quite sure why he bothered looking up Katsuki's schedule. It's not like Katsuki would give him the time of the day. His butt is cute though, and Victor is bored. So he lazily looks up the recording of Katsuki's first event at the Cup of China to check out his programs for the season.

Damn, he does have a cute butt, Victor appreciates through the recording. That short program is damn sexy. He wishes he had seen that one in person to appreciate all the details of that butt. Once the program is finished, Victor clicks on the video for the free skates and tries to locate Katsuki's part. But before he can get to it his phone rings and Yakov is yelling in his ear about him not being at the rink yet.

Victor hangs up and resumes his search for Katsuki's free skate. As his thumb fiddles on the touchpad, he starts to feel a little guilty. Sure, winning his last competitions holds zero interest to him. But this is the last message he will send to his Beloved. If he even is still out there watching. He owes to him at least a clean last try.

Sighing, he closes the laptop and makes his way to the rink.

* * *

This is it.

They're sharing a competition this year. At Rostelecom they will be sharing the same ice. Just a few more months and they'll finally be able to hold each other.

Before that, he just needs to compete at the Cup of China.

Yuuri is terrified at the Cup of China. Celestino and Pichit keep repeating that his programs this season are perfect and the high of his career. But he honestly doesn't care about that at all. No matter his score, he's going to skate on the same ice as Victor. The problem is that his brain has chosen to realise, fifteen minutes before he has to skate Eros, that he actually needs to perform this very private program in front of thousands of staring eyes.

And two of them are probably going to be Victor's.

God, he wishes he could have sent a message to Victor suggesting not to watch. Not yet. But making such a request would have been too suspicious.

The music stops. The skater right before him has finished his short. Oh God, it's going to be his turn. Oh God oh God.

"I can't do it," he mumbles to himself. "I can't do it, I can't do it."

Someone grabs him by the shoulders. His eyes barely have enough focus to comprehend that it's Pichit.

"Come on, Yuuri. Victor is watching the stream. Forget the rest, forget the competition, this is for Victor right?"

Yes. Yes it's for Victor and Victor isn't here oh God.

"He's watching, alright. Do it for him."

Do it for him. He could do anything for Victor. After the years of silence he has put his Beloved through, he owes him a clean skate.

"Yuuri, it's your turn," comes the voice of Celestino.

Pichit gently pushes him toward the ice, repeating, "Focus on Victor." He still feels like he's on the verge of hyperventilating. But at least his vision is as clear as it's going to be.

He gets to center ice and tries his best to drown the voice of the announcer. Forget the competition. This isn't about winning. This is about seducing Victor. He's not going to be at his best today, but that's just as well. He needs to peak at Rostelecom. This is... a preview. Something to tell Victor "watch me closely".

The guitar starts. He moves his hand against his sides, trying to imagine that it's Victor's hands caressing him.

He can do it.

* * *

Victor performs Stay Close To Me on autopilot. Yakov is mad at him, he only gets bronze, and he doesn't care. He feels himself slowly sinking in that numb state of mind that he associates with his lives without his Beloved. When he's alone, he... manages. He can even be happy. But he can never really bring himself to care about what's going on in those lives. It's just passing the time and waiting until the next try.

He still gets barely enough points to remain in the running for the final event, to the great frustration of Yakov. Annoying Yakov is all he lives for these days. Next event: Rostelecom, where he gets to share a competition with Katsuki. Considering how Katsuki reacted when Victor tried to talk to him at events, he's really not expecting much from him. But it's still nice to be able to see him skate in real life for once. There's something magnetic about the way Katsuki skates. And that ass and those tights. Victor could spend a decade or two worshipping them. If his Beloved was here, he would do the same. They could create a religion together. They haven’t done that yet.

On the day of the short program of Rostelecom, Victor has a brief moment of dread when he realizes that if he doesn’t get into the final event (which is quite possible considering his abysmal scores) it's going to be his last two performances in professional figure skating. Ever. Being a professional athlete is far too much work and he's certain he's never going to do it again. At the warm-up, Chris is with his boyfriend, Jean-Jacques with his parents and fiancee... and here he is. Alone. With his coach who is giving him the cold shoulder. If he could have one wish for this stupid life, it would be to have one competition with his Beloved supporting him from the sidelines. Just one.

He scans the arena, just in case his Beloved decides to magically appear right at this instant... And his eyes lock on Katsuki who is looking back at him. Katsuki startles and hurriedly turns his gaze away. He looks embarrassed to have been caught looking at him. That's peculiar. Everybody looks at him all the time, there's no reason to be embarrassed. He skates to Chris and discreetly asks him. "Is Katsuki looking at me or...?"

Chris looks at him like he's a particularly obtuse child.  
"Victor. Katsuki is staring at you all the time. Except when you're looking, of course."  
"Really? That's new."  
Chris sighs dramatically.  
"The things I put up with."  
"What?"  
But instead of answering Chris skates away to continue his warm-up.

After that, Victor tries to discreetly observe Katsuki, but either he's not being as discreet as he thinks or Katsuki is done staring at him. Well, whatever. He'll deal with it after the competition.

Victor has performed so badly this year that he's the second one in line for the short program, only behind Crispino. During the first performance of the event Victor mutes Yakov's berating and tries to find back the feelings he wants to evoke in the short program. The very same feelings that his mind is trying to ignore by becoming indifferent to everything. If the free skate, Stay close to me, is supposed to express loneliness and desperation, the short program is about hope and eagerness. What he feels at the beginning of each life, at the idea of meeting his Beloved again. What he felt the first time he performed in an international competition, knowing this could be the first time his Beloved caught sight of him. What he felt when he received that letter, not knowing yet that all those years down the line it would be the last he ever heard of his Beloved.

He’s trying to find hope and happiness. He can only find sadness and regret. Even before taking the ice, he knows it will be a disaster. "If you watch, Beloved," Victor thinks as the first notes of the music echo in the rink, "know that you did this."

* * *

His Beloved is terribly depressed.

Yuuri knows those eyes and he knows that slowness. He can see the loneliness screaming in the sag of his shoulders. He can feel the cold prying at Victor's heart.

And still, he does nothing. Only stares.

He's never felt so conflicted. There's nothing he wants more than to run toward him and cradle him in his arms. But he's also so, so close to making it. Tomorrow's the free skate. Tomorrow, after his performance, he'll be able to make up for the years he made him wait. Just one more day.

He stares so much that Victor notices. It takes all of his willpower to detach his gaze from him and look in front of him instead. He tries his best to focus on the warm-up. He needs to be at his best to perform Eros.

Crispino is first, then Victor, then Yuuri.

Victor's program is... not great. Technically, he's perfect. But it's lifeless. The judges give him a great score anyway. Flowers and gifts rain on him and he doesn't take any to the kiss and cry. Yuuri racks his brain. Is there anything he can do for him without giving himself away?

"Yuuri! It's your turn!"

He's all out of time. He ignores Celestino and runs to Victor, who is already leaving the rink.

"V, Victor! Victor!"

It takes two calls before Victor notice him.

"Katsuki?" And Yuuri hates how dead his voice sounds. His Beloved should never sound like that while saying his name.  
"Watch my program. Please."  
He can't say more. He hopes that he conveys everything he needs through his eyes. Celestino is calling for him in the background. He has to get on the ice right now, but not without Victor.  
Victor looks surprised. Good. That's leagues better than dead.  
"Please," Yuuri insists.  
The announcer calls for him.  
Victor nods. Once. His expression is bewildered.

That's all Yuuri needs. He runs to the ice. The crowd yell, though not as strong as for Victor. Yuuri doesn't care. This program isn't for them.

He stands at center ice. This is it. He waited all this life to gift this to his Beloved. He needs to be perfect. His anxiety flares up but Yuuri pushes it away. He needs to be confident. Charming. Sexy. He needs to be the person his Beloved falls for, life after life. The hottest person of all time.

As the guitar starts, Yuuri shoots a look at the rink side. Victor is looking back at him. ‘Watch me, Love,’ he thinks as he blows him a kiss.

[(Click if you want to listen to _Eros_ while reading)](https://soundcloud.com/shitsujikuro/on-love-eros-yuri-on-ice)

His Beloved doesn't know this body yet. He knows Yuuri by heart, but he doesn't know the curve of those hips, the strength in those thighs. Yuuri worked on this body. His Beloved loved him before, but he's about to fall for him far harder than any other life.

Every move is extended to show off his curves. Every sultry look is sent right to where Victor stands. He and Victor spent centuries making love. All those memories are rolling off his skin. "Do you remember this, Beloved?" Yuuri thinks while shaking his ass in a mimicry of pushing right inside him. "Do you see yourself sliding against my skin?" as his hands caress his skin shining with sweat.

Yuuri makes love on the ice, where everyone can see him but most importantly where his Beloved can see each detail of his skin. He skates his program with a passion that he never showed before because there was no point, not without Victor there.

When he stops, he blinks sweat out of his eyes and immediately looks for Victor. He can see his silver hair, his beacon through the ages, but he's too far to make out the details of his expression. He vaguely hears the cheers around him. He needs to make sure Victor watched him. He needs to see his reaction. He skates to the rink door and his vision pinpoints to a head of silver hair. He dodges someone who might be Celestino to reach Victor.

Victor looks as breathless as him. Good.

"Did you watch?" he asks even though he knows the answer.  
Victor nods. His cheeks are pink.  
"Watch again tomorrow."  
Victor nods with a bewildered look.  
"Do you...?" he starts, but Yuuri turns away.

He can't handle that look from his Beloved without being able to devour him. His program is still scouring in his veins. It's like he's burning. He plops down in the kiss and cry and waits for his heart rate to slow down.

"This was... something else,” Celestino comments. “Good job. Shame you downgraded your toe loop but you should make up for it with the PCS."  
Did he? He was so focused on Victor he barely paid attention to his jumps.  
"It wasn't about the jumps."  
"I can see that. Do you plan to do the same for the free?"  
He doesn't answer. He doesn't know. When he thinks about tomorrow, his score is the least of his worries.  
Celestino sighs.  
"If you skate like this tomorrow but do the correct jumps you can..."  
He's interrupted by a clamour. His scores are up. Yuuri squints at the tiny screen.  
He broke his personal record.  
It's good, but he's not that surprised. It's not like he really tried before now.

* * *

"Watch my program. Please."

The last time Victor had tried to speak to Katsuki, that man had done his best to stay away from him.

But right now, Katsuki is right in front of him with an intensity in his eyes that reminds Victor of...

"Please."

What else can he do but nod? And then Katsuki disappears, as fast as he appeared.

The way he said it, he sounded so much like his Beloved... but Victor tends to see his Beloved everywhere. It doesn't mean anything.

Still, he stays and watch. He didn't have a chance yet to see this program in real life. He doesn't have anything better to do.

The music starts. Just like Victor saw once on a tiny laptop screen, Katsuki rolls his hands against his own body. And then he does something that definitely didn't happen on the tiny laptop screen.

He blows him a kiss.

There's no mistake here, that was directed at him. Victor doesn't have the time to wonder what this means, because Katsuki is moving in ways that push everything else out of his brain.

Damn. Was he always this sexy?

Because there's no other word for this. Katsuki is practically fucking an invisible lover. An invisible, but almost palpable, lover. He moves like a man on a mission to seduce the universe.

Or is it just, seduce Victor? He can feel himself flush at the thought. Was this what his pleading earlier was all about? Did Katsuki want him despite his avoidance the previous times they met?

Victor can almost feel his fingers ghosting Yuuri's skin. The way Yuuri moves is so perfect. So... familiar.

It's over too soon. Victor needs to see more of it. That wasn’t enough to be sure. Is he projecting again, putting his Beloved in a stranger's body?

Victor feels raw and exposed. He needs to retreat, to review the program in his mind's eye, to make sure...

But Yuuri is right in front of him again.

Victor is desperately searching his eyes for an acknowledgement, a sign, anything!

"Did you watch?"  
Of course he fucking watched! But does that mean...  
"Watch again tomorrow."  
He starts a question, he doesn't know which one because there's so many clouding his mind.

But Yuuri ignores him and goes away.

Victor feels stupid.

"Is that it?" he murmurs. He wants to shout, but he doesn't have the strength. Yuuri ignores him again. Why? What does Yuuri want? And why does he sound and look so much like his Beloved? His Beloved wouldn't leave him suffering like that. He wouldn't ignore him when he's bleeding.

Victor feels weak. So weak he could collapse. But he's still in the arena. There are too many prying eyes. Victor escapes. He doesn't stay to see Yuuri's scores or hear Yavok's screeches. He doesn't care. All he knows is that he couldn't find any hope to channel into his program, and that Yuuri's gave him some again only to squash it under his heel.

Yuuri is a devil disguised as his Beloved.

Or his Beloved is playing him a very cruel prank.

Either sound just as likely.

Victor cries himself to sleep.

The next day, he still hasn't made up his mind. He doesn't know if it's just his imagination putting his Beloved in Yuuri's (very sexy) body. He only knows that he thought once that Yuuri was the kind of person he could spend one lifetime with. Seeing Yuuri dance like that makes Victor bleed with want. He wants Yuuri. He wants his Beloved. He wants so much and he has so little.

At least he's in the right mindset to skate this time.

His last program. His last desperate call to the lover who forgot about him. On the ice, everything feels slow. This life has been all longing and waiting. Not much living. He wants to move on, to resign himself to yet another life separated. He has done it before. He can do it again.

But it's so hard. His Beloved sent him that letter. What happened after that? What is keeping them apart? Is Victor condemned to wait until he dies?

Is his Beloved even watching this?

Is there even a point?

Why is the music not finished yet? He's been skating alone in front of thousands for years. All for nothing. Is there really nothing he can do to show his Beloved how much he needs him?

He extends his arms like his Beloved is just beyond reach. So, so close to him.

But when the music is finally done, Victor stands alone, arms empty, under the acclamations of thousands.

He let himself fall down to his knees. That's it. There's nothing left to do.

* * *

"Are you okay?"

Yuuri hides his face behind his hands and quickly erases his tears. He nods to Celestino's question but he can hear disbelief in his silence.

He's starting to regret it. Why did he think ghosting Victor like that would be a good idea? He should at least have sent him other letters. Tell him that he was preparing something. That he would reveal himself soon.

At the same time, he can't help thinking that Victor's last skate was beautiful. And he feels so guilty for thinking this.

Just a few more minutes.

After that, he'll spend a lifetime or two apologising.

Before he has to take to the ice, he goes to Victor. His eyes are still red from crying. Why is he so beautiful like that? When he stops in front of him, Victor raises his eyes to him and, oh, there's so much hurt in those.

"What do you want?" Victor asks, and why does it feel as though Yuuri is his torturer?

Yuuri has to try several times before he can find his voice.

"I'm sorry," is all he manages to say.  
Victor frowns.  
"About what?"  
"I never wanted... It seemed like a good idea at the time but..."  
Celestino and the stadium speakers are calling for him.  
"Just... watch this?"  
"Why, did you make the program for me?" he asks with a humourless laugh.  
Yuuri smiles softly. Victor seems confused by this reaction.  
"All my career was for you."

And he runs.

He glides around the rink and smiles for the crowd, but when he's on Victor's side of the rink, he has eyes only for him. They make eye contact. Victor looks... confused, and lost.

Yuuri hopes it's not too late to repair what he has done.

He tries to channel the emotions that went through his head when he first formulated the plan, twenty years ago. He wanted to surprise his Beloved. To gift him a memory that would still follow him a hundred lives down the road. To do something for him that would require years of work and dedication. To show him that even when they're apart, in everything he does, he still thinks only of him.

Now, all he has to do is to tell this story with his body.

[(Click if you want to listen to _Yuri on Ice_ while reading, which I recommend)](https://soundcloud.com/user-985807580/yuri-on-ice)

The music starts. Yuuri raises his arm toward a new sun, stretching his new limbs. He goes left, he goes right, but no sign of his Beloved.

So he starts to skate.

There's no one else on the ice. It's lonely. He turns and he turns, but still, nothing.

And then, on the first jump, he sees his Beloved.

He's there. He's there and he's far but within reach. Yuuri skates faster. He wants to reach him, to be with him.

But his Beloved is so beautiful it hurts to look. He shines like the sun and everyone loves him. Yuuri curls on himself in a sit spin. He knows that the moment he appears, his Beloved will drop everything to be with him. He doesn't doubt his love. They've been together too long for that. But he still wants to earn it. You don't appear on the doorstep of your loved one after years of silence without at least flowers, right? But his Beloved is worth much more than that. What could Yuuri give him to show him how much he loves him?

He can give him this, he thinks as he extends his arms and shows off the lines of his body. He can give him years of work. He can give him a performance worthy of an international gold. He can give him spins and jumps few other humans are capable of. He can give him a performance to say everything he still has trouble saying. A love letter carved with blades. And hopefully, it will be worth the wait.

But the years pass. The music slows down. After everything, he would think that ten or twenty years wouldn't be so much for them. But it was. And it's hard, knowing that his Beloved is a phonecall away. Year after year, doubt crawls in him. Should he stop now? Should he just go hide in his Beloved's arms and cry?

Maybe he was wrong, but here they are. Yuuri is on the ice and Victor is looking at him. Is he understanding what Yuuri wouldn't say? Is he reading the words he carves with every step? Yuuri hopes so, because as the music picks up again, so does his heartbeat, because they're reaching the end.

In the end, it all comes down to this: Yuuri loves him with every muscle and every step, every jump and drop of sweat, every piano note and every flutter of lashes. Every second of these last twenty years he spent perfecting his art because his Beloved deserves nothing but perfection. Each move is love. For what would this neverending life be without him?

Like a quill lifting up from the paper, his blades leave the ice on the final quad flip, then land to draw the final period. All he needs to do now is to wrap it up with one last spin. Then send it, with an extension of his arm, toward his Beloved.

There they are.

His legs crumple under him. The noise of the rink barely reaches him. He can go to Victor now. He can take him in his arms and finally kiss him. And maybe he won't forgive him. Maybe he'll even hate him for a while. But after that, they'll be together again. And that's all that matters.

It takes him a few tries to find the strength to stand again and glide toward the exit. His eyes widen, recognizing silver hair waiting for him. He skates faster because this time he can. He skates breathless and Victor has his arms open for him. They collide, the ground is hard and they don't care. Victor is looking at him with disbelief and tears and trembling hands.

"Are you really...?" he asks like he's afraid to believe.  
As his answer, Yuuri slowly take his cheeks in his hands and places a kiss on his lips. He can feel the magic that binds them together tingling on his skin.  
Victor gasps.  
They separate.  
Tears flow down their cheeks.  
"It's really you."  
Yuuri wipes a tear.  
"Sorry I made you wait."  
Victor shakes his head softly, never breaking eye contact.  
"It was beautiful. Thank you."

* * *

"I'm so sorry. For the wait. For everything."  
Victor gently rubs his knuckles.  
"I can't say the last few years were very happy." Victor chuckles. "But it was worth it."  
"Was it?" Yuuri asks with anxiety dripping from his words.

Celestino is distinctly uncomfortable sitting next to them on the kiss and cry. Yuuri and Victor ignore him and the rest of the world.

"It's the most romantic thing I've ever seen," Victor says, and deposits a kiss to Yuuri's temple. "I love it. But next time, send me a few more letters, just so I know you haven't died?"  
"I will, I promise."  
"Then we're all good," Victor concludes with a sweet kiss to Yuuri's nose.  
"I'm glad." Yuuri sighs with relief.  
"Mmmh how will I top this off next time, I wonder?" Victor muses while tapping his finger to his lips.  
"Please don't do anything too extravagant," Yuuri asks with a smile.  
"I could be a rockstar."  
"Oh no." Yuuri laughs.  
"Or a mermaid."  
"How would you even do that?"  
"Science has advanced so far recently, so fast. Doesn't it feel like anything is possible? Who knows, soon we could be traveling from star to star."  
"When you say it like that... There's still a lot more beautiful things to discover together, isn't it?" Yuuri says in wondering tone.  
Their fingers tighten together.  
"There always will be more to life. To us. But for now, let's enjoy this life, shall we?"  
"Let's," Yuuri completes, and closes the gap between their lips.

The speakers wake up. Celestino shouts. The stadium roars and applauds. Yuuri broke the world record and he doesn't care. He and his Beloved are together again.

Yet another life.  
Love all the same.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to use this fic as an antidote for every fluffy fic that suddenly ends with someone dying. That was just Yuuri and Victor's first life, and nobody can tell me otherwise.


End file.
